The Brentwood-ish area, near Santa Monica. It's funny because I saw your "trapped in Texas" tag and I'd probably go with "trapped in LA" for mine-- traffic, smog, and all that.

Eh .... the traffic and smog were awful when I lived there too ... but I still loved it. I lived in Westwood for about ten years, then Silverlake for about a year, and then Glendale for another 6 or so years. During that time I always lived really close to work, or I worked really odd hours, so the commute was never a problem. I ended up moving because I didn't want to make the commute into downtown LA during "regular" business hours ... and I wasn't keen on living in the heart of downtown (which may have improved .. but which really sucked when I was there).

My whole "Trapped in Texas" saga is somewhere in the Vent and Rant thread. I just happened to pick a place in Texas where you are expected to give up all your rights under the U.S. Constitution immediately upon moving here. But .... no one tells you that before you sink all your money into a humongous house. (bitch, moan, whine ....)